Related papers: The Pre-Big Bang Scenario in String Cosmology
This is an introduction to the ekpyrotic scenario, with an emphasis on the two contexts of brane cosmology and primordial universe scenarios. A self-contained introduction to brane cosmology and a qualitative overview and comparison of the…
The pre-big-bang cosmology inspired by superstring theories has been suggested as an alternative to slow-roll inflation. We analyze, in both the Jordan and Einstein frames, the effect of spatial curvature on this scenario and show that too…
String theory can (in principle) describe gravity at all curvature scales, and can be applied to cosmology to look back in time beyond the Planck epoch. The duality symmetries of string theory suggest a cosmological picture in which the…
We review applications of string theory to cosmology, from primordial times to the present-day accelerated expansion. Starting with a brief overview of cosmology and string compactifications, we discuss in detail moduli stabilisation,…
We present some phenomenological aspects of the pre-big-bang cosmological model inspired by the duality properties of string theory. In particular, assuming the spatial sections of the homogeneous background geometry to be isotropic, we…
I will briefly review the formation and evolution of cosmic superstrings, in the context of brane-world cosmological models within M-theory. These objects can play the role of cosmic strings, offering a variety of astrophysical…
Cosmic superstrings are expected to be formed at the end of brane inflation, within the context of brane-world cosmological models inspired from string theory. By studying properties of cosmic suprestring networks, and comparing their…
Important open questions in cosmology require a better understanding of the Big Bang singularity. In string and matrix theories, light-like analogues of cosmological singularities (singular plane wave backgrounds) turn out to be…
The purpose of this review is to discuss recent developments occurring at the interface of cosmology with string and M-theory. We begin with a short review of 1980s string cosmology and the Brandenberger-Vafa mechanism for explaining…
We take a critical look at a recent conjecture concerning the past attractor in the pre-big-bang scenario. We argue that the Milne universe is unlikely to be a general past attractor for such models and support this with a number of…
In this review, a number of approaches to superstring cosmology which make use of key features which distinguish string theory from point particle theories are discussed, with particular emphasis on emergent scenarios. One motivation for…
In string theory, the traditional picture of a Universe that emerges from the inflation of a very small and highly curved space-time patch is a possibility, not a necessity: quite different initial conditions are possible, and not…
Within two specific string cosmology scenarios --differing in the way the pre- and post-big bang phases are joined-- we compute the size and spectral slope of various types of cosmologically amplified quantum fluctuations that arise in…
The production of a background of super-horizon curvature perturbations with the appropriate (red) spectrum needed to trigger the cosmic anisotropies observed on large scales is associated, in the context of pre-big bang inflation, with a…
We re-examine the graceful exit problem in the pre-big bang scenario of string cosmology, by considering the most general time-dependent classical correction to the Lagrangian with up to four derivatives. By including possible forms for…
A possibility of existence of ultra-heavy (quasi)stable particles, mechanisms leading to their large life-time, their production in the early universe, and cosmological manifestations are reviewed.
The equations of motion and junction conditions for a gravi-dilaton brane world scenario are studied in the string frame. It is shown that they allow Kasner-like solutions on the brane, which makes the dynamics of the brane very similar to…
We consider braneworld scenarios including the leading correction to the Einstein-Hilbert action suggested by superstring theory, the Gauss-Bonnet term. We obtain and study the complete set of equations governing the cosmological dynamics.…
Superstring theory predicts the existence of a scalar field, the dilaton. I review some basic features of the dilaton interactions and explain their possible consequences in cosmology and particle physics.
I discuss cosmological models either derived from, or inspired by, string theory or M-theory. In particular I discuss solutions in the low-energy effective theory and the role of the dilaton, moduli and antisymmetric form fields in the…